OBJECTIVES: Lung cancer (LC) is the 3rd most common cancer in France, and the 1st leading cause of death. A pilot program is being launched by the Institut National du Cancer (INCA), at the request of the Haute Autorité de Santé, to assess the benefits of introducing organized national screening by 2030. We aim to describe ongoing and completed LC screening study designs in France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain.

METHODS: Studies were selected via the "lungcancerpolicynetwork" website, and relevant data extraction was carried out using PubMed, clinicaltrials.gov and grey literature.

RESULTS: Thirty-three LC screening studies were found among these 6 countries. Italy was the country with the largest number of conducted and ongoing studies (n=13), followed by France (n=12). The study objectives varied, although ¼ of the French studies were developed to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of LC screening, by describing the participation rate, mortality and LC incidence. Feasibility and effectiveness were also the most common objectives among the 33 studies (42%). Further objectives included the choice of eligibility criteria (9%), and the contribution of circulating tumor cells to the screening process (9%). "50-75 years", current smoking "≥ 30 PY", and maximum time after cessation for former smokers "< 15 years" appeared as inclusion criteria in respectively 24%, 39% and 45% of the studies. The low-dose CT scan was the major screening test ; its implementation varied between annual and bi-annual intervals. Completed study durations varied between 2 and > 15 years.

CONCLUSIONS: Numerous studies have already been set up in Europe and will support the French pilot program to conclude on the implementation of a national LC screening. Furthermore, additional studies, programs and tools such as prediction models are needed to obtain the greatest possible support from the target population, and to increase the efficiency of these screening programs.